Daily Devotional

March 20, 2017

Really Good Jerky

O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. – Psalm 34:8

Driving along the Arizona-California border recently, my wife and I saw several signs advertising “Really Good Jerky.”
Somehow, this unexceptional claim caught my fancy. We stopped there to buy some and were pleased to discover that it actually was “Really Good Jerky.”

In this day of twenty-first-century advertising hype, we are constantly bombarded with exaggerated claims. Olives, for example, are not “large” but “colossal.”
A laundry detergent container is “giant” rather than “big.” Furniture stores declare that the current sale is the “greatest in company history.” A
while back, I saw a café claiming to be “internationally famous,” which made me wonder what qualified it as “international”—did someone from
Canada once eat there?

With so many exaggerated claims, it is refreshing to find an honest recommendation. Allow me tell you about one which I have found, by personal experience,
to be valid: “Receiving a life-changing experience from the Lord and then walking with Him daily is the best way to live.” This statement does not
mean that Christians never experience difficulties, such as sickness, financial problems, or the challenges of raising children. No, as long as we
are in this world, we will go through many of the same problems as the unsaved ones around us. However, the difference is that when we experience a
problem, we can take it to the Lord in prayer. Then we do not have to feel alone. Even if we do not as yet see the solution, we know that God is in
control, and this gives us great peace of mind. And just in the nick of time, the Lord comes through for us.

There are also some difficulties that we are spared by serving the Lord. For example, when I was a boy, my parents were not saved and our home was often
rocked by drunken arguments. This eventually led to divorce and a remarriage—which was no better than the first. In contrast to this, both my
wife and I had given our hearts to the Lord before we married. With the help of God, we were able to rear our large family in a happy environment.
Our kids never saw either of us drunk or shouting at each other. They felt content and secure. The Lord certainly spared both us and them a lot of
unnecessary heartache. Today, in our golden years, my wife and I are even closer to each other and more in love with each other than when we were younger.
Yes, serving the Lord is by far the best way to live.